Yankees seek to bounce back behind Pineda in Toronto

(SportsNetwork.com) - Michael Pineda takes aim at his fourth win of the season on Tuesday when the New York Yankees continue their three-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

Pineda did not get a decision on Wednesday against Tampa Bay, but pitched well, as he surrendered two runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings of his team's 3-2 loss. He also struck out five without walking a batter.

He is 3-0 on the year with a 3.73 ERA.

"I thought he threw the ball pretty well," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of Pineda. "They made him work after the first inning pretty hard and his pitch count got up, but he gave up the two runs and he gave us a great opportunity to win."

Pineda has faced the Blue Jays six times and is 1-2 with a 3.93 ERA against them.

Toronto, meanwhile, will oppose him with righty Marco Estrada, who will take struggling Daniel Norris' spot in the rotation. Estrada has appeared in six games out of the bullpen for the Jays this season and is 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA. He's also struck out 11 batters in 10 2/3 innings.

Estrada made 18 starts for the Milwaukee Brewers last season and was 7-6 with a 4.96 ERA.

Toronto pulled out a win in Monday's opener, as Russell Martin's pinch-hit RBI single capped an eighth-inning rally that propelled the Blue Jays to a 3-1 victory.

All three Toronto runs came in the eighth against New York's usually dependable bullpen, with the final two a result of Martin's infield hit and an error by Yankees third baseman Chase Headley that enabled Edwin Encarnacion to score from second.

Encarnacion had tied the game earlier in the frame with a double off Dellin Betances.

"I don't think there's anything I really could have done differently. They just found holes," Betances said.

The comeback rewarded R.A. Dickey (1-3) with his first win of the season after the knuckleballer held the Yankees to a run on three hits over eight sharp innings.

"That's probably as good as I've seen him in three years," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons remarked.

Chase Whitley scattered six hits and fanned six through seven scoreless frames for New York, which had won six straight on the road and were 12-0 when leading after seven innings this season.

Toronto took two of three from the Yankees in the season-opening series at Yankee Stadium back on April 6-9.